A landmark legal battle between two farmers over alleged GM contamination has started in the Western Australian Supreme Court. The case is expected to determine GM farmers’ liability if their crops affect neighboring territories.

The globally monitored legal battle involves local farmer Steve
Marsh who sued his neighbor Michael Baxter for negligence over
the alleged contamination of the land that Marsh used for growing
organic oat and wheat crops at Kojonup, 250 km south-east of
Perth, Western Australia.

Lawyers say it is the world’s first trial over GM contamination
and will set a precedent for future cases.

“As far as we know, this is the first court case of its type
anywhere in the world,” said Marsh’s representative Mark
Walter, a lawyer at Slater and Gordon's Commercial and Project
Litigation. The case could have an impact on the conventional
farming industry and consumers, he said, as cited by the WAtoday
news website.

It will test the legal rights of farmers to choose how and what
they farm on their land, Walter pointed out.

“It is important that farmers retain their rights to farm
GM-free food as this in turn will protect consumers' ability to
purchase GM-free food,” he said.

The trial is expected to last for three weeks and is likely to
lead to regulations outlining boundaries between GM and organic
farms, potentially reducing the land available for cultivation,
experts said. It could also change Australia’s zero tolerance
policy for contamination of organic crops.

Organic farmers fear this could lead to a lose-lose situation for
them. If the zero tolerance policy remains in place, they risk
being stripped of their organic certification because of
contamination as GM crops production increases. If the policy is
eased, Australia would lose its position as a strict organic
producer amid the growing popularity of GMO-free food across the
globe.

For the season 2013, West Australia’s growers bought a record 416
tonnes of Roundup Ready canola seed, which is 38 percent more
than the previous year.

‘Reckless’ farming blamed for contagion

Marsh, 49, claims that back in 2010, Baxter’s Roundup Ready
canola seed and swathes were blown by the wind onto his farm,
causing him to lose organic certification on 70 percent of his
land. This cost him an estimated $ 85,000 (about US $76,000) in
financial losses.

At the time of the alleged canola drift, Marsh's farm was
certified organic by the National Association for Sustainable
Agriculture Australia (NASAA), which has a zero tolerance for GM
material.

Richard Niall, a barrister for Marsh, told the court on Monday
that the situation had had a devastating effect on his client’s
livelihood and that it was Baxter’s fault.

Marsh’s neighbor “was completely indifferent and reckless by
planting genetically modified canola in adjoining paddocks,”
Niall said, as quoted by the Australian Associated Press (AAP).
The famer failed to contain the GM seeds, and “thousands of
them” escaped in the wind onto Marsh’s property, he said.
The lawyer claimed that at the time Baxter planted the canola he
knew the seeds would escape since that was “plainly
foreseeable.”

Baxter, 48, maintains that he observed all the requirements
regarding the buffer zone and informing neighbors when planting
the GM canola – shortly after the Western Australian government
allowed its commercial cultivation in 2010.

The farmer bought the seeds from biotech giant, Monsanto. Marsh’s
supporters also allege that the American corporation is providing
financial aid to Baxter in the legal action – something the
company declined to comment on, saying only that it was not a
party to the case, Reuters reported.

The organic farmer dropped his plans to sue the US firm because
of non-liability contracts it signs with all farmers who buy its
seeds, said Scott Kinnear, director of the Safe Food Foundation,
an organic farming advocacy group which is collecting donations
to help fund Marsh's suit.

‘Grow a heart, Monsanto!’

An emotional debate around growing GM crops has been going on in
West Australia ever since the first such commercially grown crop
was allowed about four years ago.

The legal battle between the two farmers has added fuel to the
fire, with Marsh’s supporters rallying on Monday outside the
court. A bunch of protesters carried placards that read ‘No to
GMO,’ ‘We want 100 percent organic food,’ and ‘Grow a heart,
Monsanto!’

Supporters of GM farming, such as the Western Australian
Pastoralists and Graziers Association, say that Baxter did
nothing wrong. Just as opponent groups backing Marsh, they are
also collecting donations to cover the GM farmer’s legal costs.

John Snook, Chair of PGA's western growers, said he was
frustrated by the lack of public support for choice in
agriculture and the advantages of new technologies, reported
Radio Australia.

“When you push the alarmism aside, the case is very clear
that Steve Marsh is trying to impose unnecessary conditions on
his neighbor and trying to stop him growing GM canola,” he
was quoted as saying. “So we feel we are on very principled
and solid ground. A legal precedent will be set.”